As part of the package, the NSEP requires students to use the skills they learn while abroad working for any branch of the government for a similar time period.

The service requirement, which may be fulfilled over a subsequent Summer or after college, has helped to attract some Harvard students, including Montauk and Joseph H. Badino ’05, to the program.

Montauk, who said she is unsure what she will do after college but “know[s] Arabic will come in somehow,” said that working for the government for two months after college will help her explore possible careers.

Hill said she hopes that Harvard students’ success in earning NSEP and Freeman grants this year will bring more students into those and other study abroad programs. The OIP has made a recent effort to present study abroad as a viable opportunity to the Harvard undergraduate community, she said.

The OIP is “doing a lot of things right that OCS [the Office of Career Services] has failed to do before,” said Badino, who will study Chinese language and business in Hong Kong next semester.

NSEP grants were also awarded to Waheed A. Gardezi ’07 to study Arabic, Daniel A. Kahn ’06 to study Russian and Cristina M. Valverde ’06 to study Arabic and Moroccan culture.

In addition to Christina and Tiffany Hung, the Freeman-Asia awards were given to Anais A. Borja ’05, Matthew J. Pagano ’06 and Peter S. Ross ’06, all to study Chinese language, and to Rebecca A. Crosbie ’05, to study Japanese.